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• The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED, 2021) has been investigating
ethnic disparities in employment, the criminal justice system, healthcare and education
and has recommended a wide range of proposals around the principles of trust,
fairness, agency and inclusivity.
• IPPR (Quilter-Pinner et al., 2020) recommends the creation of a new 'Opportunity
Guarantee' for young people in which the government should ensure that every young
person is either in education or work and a more active approach to youth labour
market policy.
Theme 5. Problematical transitions and access to higher education and post 16 systems
Overview and assessment of the evidence
Evidence from systematic reviews, once again, point to the benefits of integrated and
aligned programmes for young people that emerge as personalised packages of skills,
financial, emotional and practical support (Nelson et al., 2013; Newton et al., 2020).
Beyond measures to help learners catch up, there have been range of calls for longer-term
system reform - improving careers education, focusing greater resource on disadvantaged
learners, creating a more flexible and inclusive qualifications system and providing more
learning opportunities outside that of formal schooling. As with previous themes, these
are in the realms of advocacy rather than tried and tested and research informed. The
wider research literatures, once again point to the potential of local collaborations
combined with national strategic leadership.
Systematic review evidence on interventions for improved transitions, tackling
disengagement and supporting NEETs
• Evidence scans of educational interventions for children and young people disengaged
from education (Social Ventures, 2018). Much of the research finds that individual
programs are unlikely to achieve transformational change - and that a system of
integrated and aligned services is needed, and further research required to understand
interactive effects.
• Approaches to supporting young people not in education, employment or training - a
review (Nelson and O'Donnell, 2012). This review builds on the body of evidence
accumulated in the early 2000s. It suggests that the most effective approach combines
national leadership in terms of co-ordination and funding with local collaborative
strategies.
• Teenagers' Career Aspirations and the Future of Work - OECD (Mann, et al., 2020b)
review highlights the role of effective careers education and guidance in relation to a
changing labour market.
• ILO Working Paper 8 Youth Aspirations and the Future of Work: A Review of the
Literature and Evidence (Gardiner and Goedhuys, 2020). This review of the literature